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Honor

A Novel

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Overview

“Rich in psychological complexity, [Honor] presents an intricate pattern of events to show how a practice as heinous as honor killing could persist.” —Shelf Awareness

Turkey’s leading female writer, Elif Shafak has won international acclaim for her lyrical blend of Eastern and Western storytelling styles. In this heartbreaking tale of love and misunderstanding, Shafak draws upon the dazzling insight, emotion, and drama that infused The Bastard of Istanbul to explore the controversial issue of honor killings as it tragically plays out in one family’s life.

Twin sisters are born in the mid-1940s in a small Kurdish village on the border of Turkey and Syria. Jamila becomes a local midwife. Pembe marries Adem, and they immigrate to London in the 1970s. Bitter and frustrated with his new life, Adem moves out and Iskender, their eldest son, must step in as keeper of the family’s honor. But when Pembe begins to spend time with another man, Iskender will discover that you could love someone with all your heart and yet be ready to hurt them.

Praise

Praise for Honor

“Rich and wide as the Euphrates river along whose banks it begins and ends, Elif Shafak has woven with masterful care and compassion one immigrant family’s heartbreaking story – a story nurtured in the terrible silences between men and women trying to grow within ancient ways, all the while growing past them. I loved this book.” —Sarah Blake, author of The Postmistress

“Calls to mind The Color Purple in its fierceness of its engagement with male violence and its determination to see its characters to a better place. But Shafak is closer to Isabel Allende in spirit, confidence, and charm. Her portrayal of Muslim cultures, both traditional and globalizing, is as hopeful as it is politically sophisticated.” —The Guardian

“Shafak is an unflinching writer…this is vivid storytelling…a gripping exploration of the darkest aspects of faith and love.” —The Telegraph